According to our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) research service, smartphone shipments in the United States jumped an impressive +33% annually in Q4 2014, driven mainly by Apple which had a blockbuster quarter. Apple was number one in hardware, while Android captured top spot in software. T Mobile delivered a great performance, as its smartphone volumes soared to their highest level of all time. Its Un-carrier strategy is proving successful. Our extensive report -- available to clients here -- tracks smartphone shipments, vendor marketshare, and OS marketshare for 20 major brands and 4 major platforms in the United States across 4 top operators and the total market on a quarterly basis from Q1 2011 to Q4 2014. Operators covered include Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint and T Mobile.

UK startup, Kazam, run by ex-HTC executives, has this week announced it will introduce 7 new smartphone and 3 tablet models to the UK and European markets in the first half of 2015. They will eventually enter up to 15 countries, like Poland, Spain, etc.

The models being launched (at MWC) are the Trooper 445L (LTE), 440L, 450, 450L and 455 smartphones with Android, the Thunder 450W and 450WL smartphones with Microsoft, and the L10, L8 and L7 tablets with Microsoft.

Ths is a courageous move from Kazam, famous for previously developing one of the world's slimmest smartphones (<6mm). The vendor is now positioning to sell cost-competitive 4G LTE devices to prepaid and postpaid consumers. Kazam is hoping to copy the relative success of other niche vendors like Wiko in France and BQ in Spain.

However, our CST (Country Share Tracker) service guides that Kazam will struggle to become a major pan-European smartphone-tablet player in 2015. Here are three main reasons why:

2. Kazam is trying to differentiate on aftersales service. For example, replacing a cracked screen within the first year. But, if the system proves popular, it will be easily copied by Samsung or LG with big display assets;

3. Kazam lacks retail distribution online and offline. It will take years to get on store shelves around the European continent and worldwide. Will Kazam have the funds to support such a long-term expansion? Or will it be quickly flipped and sold off to a bigger rival? Time will tell.

Samsung finally launched the long-awaited Tizen-powered smartphone, Z1 (No Galaxy-branded phone), in India in January 2015. Equipped with rather modest specifications such as 3G support, 4-inch WVGA display, less than 1GB DRAM, 3MP rear-camera and 1,500 mAh battery, the Z1 is priced in the entry-tier (<US$100 wholesale) in a bid to appeal to first-time smartphone users in India, the world's third largest smartphone market. Samsung next launched the Z1 in Bangladesh at the first week of February.

Samsung is planning on rolling out the Z1 to more developing countries, including Nepal, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, in the coming months. Samsung has to compete against the likes of Android (Android One included), Firefox and WP-based smartphones, which are priced at similar levels or even lower than Z1. We guide that an insufficient number of applications (compared with Android) is the key area that Samsung must sort out as soon as possbile, to grow its Tizen ecosystem and make the Z1 more competitive. It will be possible to support Android appplications, either by installing an emulator, or by activating a virtual machine on somewhat higher-end apps processors later on, just like Blackberry Passport.

Samsung has already implemented its Tizen OS on many electronic devices in 2014, such as smart TVs, wearables and digital still cameras, so we expect this vendor to put more resources into enlarging the Tizen-based ecosystem in 2015 across all areas from mobile to office to automotive to home, to prepare for an emerging IoT world.

According to the newly-updated report -- Global Handset Vendor Market Share for 15 Countries in Q4 2014 -- published by our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service --Micromax, a burgeoning local handset vendor, outperformed siignificantly in the Indian mobile phone market during the fourth quarter of 2014.

Micromax has quadrupled its handset shipments in India and Asia in three years, emerging as a major player in the region alongside Samsung. Low-cost Android models and crisp marketing in suburban areas are among the key to Micromax's success.

This extensive report, available to clients, is tracking 23 top handset brands across 15 major countries on a quarterly basis. Countries covered include China, UK, Brazil and others.

According to the recently published report -- Global Smartphone Vendor Market Share for 15 Countries in Q4 2014 -- published by our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service -- Samsung remained the number one smartphone vendor in most major countries worldwide during the fourth quarter of 2014. Apple performed exceptionally well, boosted by robust demand for its larger-sized 4.7- and 5.5-inch iPhones, which enabled the vendor to become the biggest smartphone vendor in the UK for the first time ever. In India, the world's third largest smartphone country, Samsung and Micromax competed almost neck-and-neck, taking the first and second spots, respectively.

This report, available to clients, tracks 18 leading smartphone vendors across up to 30 major countries by quarter in 2014. Countries covered include Thailand, Philippines, Colombia, Nigeria, Egypt and others.

According to a newly-published report from our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service -- China Handset and Smartphone and OS Share : Q4 2014 -- Apple nudged up to become the second largest handset and smartphone vendor in China in the fourth quarter of 2014, for the first time ever. Strong demand for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models, as well as an extended retail presence, and sizeable subsidies from three operators, are the main drivers behind the surging volumes, which doubled annually.

Xiaomi maintained its no.1 handset and smartphone position in China, for two quarters in a row. Xiaomi's rapid (but slowing) growth -- along with rising brands like Vivo and Oppo -- is harming established local rivals such as Lenovo, Coolpad and others. Samsung dipped to the no. 3 position, amid competition from Apple and Chinese brands. Lenovo plunged to fifth place this quarter and lost share annually and sequentially, while Huawei held fourth place -- driven by its Honor sub-brand and Ascend models across multiple price-tiers.

Our extensive report contains handset and smartphone shipments and marketshare by multiple vendors and operating systems by quarter in China from Q1 2009 to Q4 2014. A forecast by smartphone vendor for Q1 2015 is also included. The report is a valuable tool for stakeholders wishing to track the China market, the world's largest by volume and revenue.

According to our Country Share Tracker (CST) service, T Mobile has overtaken Sprint -- and closed the gap on AT&T -- to become firmly established as the 3rd largest smartphone carrier (by shipments) in the high-value United States market. Despite possible competition from a Google MVNO, device vendors with North American growth ambitions -- such as ZTE, Microsoft (Nokia) or Motorola -- should target T Mobile in 2015. More analysis and data can be downloaded from clients here.

According to the recently published report, Global LTE Handset Vendor Shipments by Country: Q3 2014, under our Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service, China has finally become the world's number one LTE handset market for the first time during Q3 2014, making the US slip to the 2nd position. China LTE handset market grew substantially by volume, up 140% sequentially, mainly driven by the growing influence of two rising stars, Oppo and Vivo, in the growing LTE segment in China.

The more detailed and extensive analysis, and LTE handset market share by vendor by country can be viewed here, available to our paid clients.

India has become the world's 3rd largest smartphone market by volume, behind China and the United States as of Q3 2014, based on our recently published report, Global Smartphone Vendor Marketshare for 15 Countries: Q3 2014, under Handset Country Share Tracker (HCST) service. India's smartphone market is growing very rapidly, mainly boosted by the huge population, relatively lower smartphone penetration, many tech-savvy people, rising influence of local vendors and online channel, and many global smartphone vendors who are rushing into this big country looking for potentially economical success. We believe that the bulk of future growth in India's smartphone market will be coming from under retail $100 prices as there are myriads of price-sensitive users in India, looking for cheaper phones.

A lot of global and local vendors are prioritizing this price-tier, under retail $100 to gain traction and lead the market share. First of all, there are already not a few smartphones priced below $80 (retail) in the market, which are powered by Android and Firefox. These ultra-affordable smartphones with modest hardware specifications and services are accounting for almost half of all smartphones sold in India in 2014, according to our published report, BRIC Country Smartphone Revenues, ASPs & Price-Tier Forecasts: 2009 to 2020 under our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service. Second, Google is collaborating with leading Indian vendors such as Micromax, Karbonn and Spice, and already launched a few Android One smartphones from September at a retail $100 price. Google is widening its Android One partnerships now, and will be willing to cut the price below $100 to generate the bigger share in India.

Third, Microsoft (Nokia), which has not gained much success in India with its Windowsphone OS, is focusing on lower-priced segment with its Lumia 530/630 series. In addition, as Microsoft is giving out its OS for free for all sub-8" devices, we expect more smartphones under the retail $100 to hit the Indian market, mainly driven by Micromax, Karbonn and Lava. Fourth, Andriod players such as Xiaomi and Motorola are creating more presence in India, by providing the higher-specced phones at reasonably affordable price-points, at between $90 and $110 in retail pricing, mostly through online channels, making their price advantage stand out. Finally, Samsung, the king of global smartphone market, is reportedly set to fight back with its long-awaited Tizen-based smartphone. It is reportedly known that this Tizen OS smartphone will be launched in India in mid of December at around retail US$100 price, so we estimate that Samsung is ready to go head to head in this intensely competitive segment.